On Tuesday, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) would no longer recommend offering the COVID-19 vaccine to all children, beginning at age 6 months, or to pregnant women. This reversal in guidance contradicts previous recommendations from the CDC and Hawaii Department of Health — and throws public confidence in CDC policy under the bus.
There has been no new analysis of the data, no new scientific discovery to prompt this change in guidelines. In fact, the health secretary bypassed federal experts on the CDC’s advisory committee for immunization practices, failing to seek their expected input. Catching many state and regional public-health offices by surprise, Kennedy made the announcement on social media, saying he “couldn’t be more pleased” to cancel previous guidance.
It’s an egregious act: Offensive to Americans who value the nation’s collective well-being, the restriction undermines confidence in the objective value of federal public health policy. And for those who put their faith, and fates, in this leadership’s hands, the results could be deadly.
Health concerns and risks are elevated by this new CDC guidance, as Hawaii Gov. Josh Green has emphasized. This week, Green, who is also a licensed physician, called the announcement a “big mistake.”
New CDC guidance also is expected to make it more difficult and costly to obtain a vaccine for those under 65 who seek the protective shot. To get the vaccine, people will need to provide proof of an existing condition that elevates their risk. And insurers are more likely to deny coverage.
The full fallout in reduced insurance coverage has yet to play out, but any denials for individuals who wish to be vaccinated increases risk for those individuals and their communities. “By removing the capacity to vaccinate people under age 65 for the most part, you’re going to see more spread,” Green said.
Before this announcement, federal policymakers approached vaccine approvals and guidelines with an easy-to-grasp justification: protecting all Americans from the coronavirus, to the extent viable. Federal health agencies are expected to weigh vaccine safety and effectiveness against health risks and logistical barriers, offering the option that maximizes public benefit.
The changed federal health directives sidestep long-held reliance on facts and sound analysis, giving weight to suspicion and antiscience bias. And by undermining Americans’ enthusiasm for proven vaccines of all kinds, the damage could be vast — even in comparison to the enormous losses suffered during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Vaccines save lives. For a current, tragic example, look to the heartbreaking deaths from measles in the U.S. this year that could have been prevented, had victims obtained a readily available vaccine. The impacts of contradictory policy announcements on individual decision-making stand to increase such risks.
As a result of the misguided and dangerous “leadership” on vaccinations by Kennedy, pregnant women, parents of infants and minor children, and adults under 65 must become more vigilant to assess individual need for a COVID-19 vaccine.
The obvious recommendation is to check with a family doctor. However, many in Hawaii, particularly low-income families and young adults, don’t regularly visit doctors, relying instead on clinic visits when needed — and may not be aware of risks to themselves or their families.
The state’s Med-QUEST medical insurers for low-income households and health clinics offering care to all, regardless of ability to pay, must serve as a backstop for those exposed to COVID-19 or who seek answers about their vulnerability. The state Department of Health can and must help, by engaging in widespread public messaging.
Among doctors, the strong consensus opinion has been that vaccinations protect against COVID-19 complications, even for those with mild infections, and that access to updated vaccines should be continued. Hawaii residents: Protect yourselves. Ask a doctor if in doubt.
Source: The Garden Island